Chapter 156: Like an Old Friend Returning (Two in One)
It was the end of another day. The bell of Our Lady of the Rosary College, a girls' school, had just rung, and many young female students in school uniforms had already walked out of the classroom, chattering, and walked towards the stairs in groups of two or three.
Hong Jialan, who is now in Form 4, walked down the stairs with her friends Zhu Qingting and Fang Ziyao, and walked towards the roadside cart stall, chatting and laughing, ready to buy some street snacks and drinks to reward themselves for a day of study.
"Hey, do you have any show tonight?" Zhu Qingting bit the straw and turned to look at the other two.
"No, the recent TV series and movies are so boring. Alas, since Jiayi closed down, there are only two old companies TBB and Liying left. They are either Shi Nai dramas or martial arts movies. A little bit They are not suitable for the tastes of young children like us." Fang Ziyao groaned in pain, "The movies in the past two years are not very good. The only way I can relax now is to listen to songs on the radio..."
"That may not be the case!" Hong Jialan's words attracted the attention of her two friends. She then slowly took out a newspaper with the list and schedule of TV series to be broadcast that night and shook it. "Look, TBB seems to want to learn from Jiayi's previous experience and bring in TV series from Japan to broadcast!"
"Really? Really?! Let me see it!" Zhu Qingting and Fang Ziyao were excited when they heard it. They quickly snatched the newspaper from Hong Jialan's hand, quickly scanned the list of TBB's various channels, and then saw a name in the column of Jade Channel, "Wow, 9:30 prime time slot - TBB is willing to use it to broadcast imported dramas? Let me see... "The Thousand Faces of the Girl"? "
"I've seen this name in a magazine. I heard it's the most popular TV series in Japan in the past two years. The male lead is especially handsome! There are also many big-name Japanese stars in it!" Zhu Qingting shouted.
"Really?" Fang Ziyao asked hurriedly.
"Even pearls are not that real. My sister works as a secretary in a Japanese company. She often flies to Japan with her manager. She said this drama is very popular there. It's a pity that Jiayi doesn't make it anymore, otherwise it would definitely be imported as an imported drama!" Zhu Qingting explained confidently, "If it wasn't only in Japanese, I would have asked my sister to buy me a video tape to watch!"
"This is perfect. Now that it's been introduced, there will definitely be a Cantonese version with dubbing. Is it on Jade Channel tonight at 9:30?" Fang Ziyao thought for a moment, "Jia Lan, my mother is at home right now. She will definitely want to watch Li Ying's early Republican drama. Can I go to your house tonight to watch it?"
"No problem, my mom is working overtime tonight and won't be back until at least 11 o'clock, so you can come over!" Hong Jialan said readily.
"Then I want to go too. It would be too boring for me to watch it alone at home." Zhu Qingting quickly interrupted: The economy has been good in recent years, and even every household in housing estates has started to buy televisions, whether black and white, color, large or small screens. As long as every family has enough money, the first home appliance they buy is definitely a television.
Even those cage dwellers who live in the cage house will usually pool their money together to buy a black-and-white TV or a second-hand color TV and put it in the cage house as a way of entertainment and leisure for everyone in the cage house in the evening.
Due to the habit of watching plays and movies in groups in the past, most people now prefer to watch TV with their family or a few friends rather than watching it alone, so that there is always someone to accompany them whether they are crying or laughing.
Especially for those dramas with supernatural or horror themes, it is even more necessary for multiple people to hug each other and tremble in fear in order to build up courage...
While watching her two friends excitedly discussing what snacks to buy tonight so they could go to her house to watch "The Thousand Faces of the Girl", Hong Jialan glanced at the cast list behind the title with satisfaction.
One of the leading actors is Su Yun, Mary Sue!
It had been three whole years since I last saw Su Yun on the screen—of course, the “meetings” I had with her by frequently rewatching movie tapes were not counted in this number.
When she was in primary school at Sham Shui Po Government Primary School, Hong Jialan was already a fan of the movie "The Perfect Match". Later, as Su Yun produced many excellent works, it was natural for her to become a loyal fan of Su Yun.
I originally thought that Su Yun had "retired" like those heroes in martial arts novels. Unexpectedly, although there was less news about her because of that hateful reason, Su Yun still did not give up filming. Instead, he found another way to go elsewhere and continued to devote himself to the film and television industry.
She also used her connections to attract many big stars from Japan to make guest appearances. In addition, this TV series is said to be a big investment and Su Yun has always produced high-quality products. After the broadcast, Japan has been very popular for so long, so this TV series must be super good!
It's just right, I'll recommend it to my good friends and help Su Yun get some ratings and support!
Hong Jialan was calculating everything in her mind, but when she accidentally looked at the time on her watch, she immediately called out impatiently, "Hey, Yudanzi, why aren't our fish balls ready yet?"
"It will be ready soon!" Chen Shaoqin, who was asked by the uncle who was temporarily making fish balls to help, responded, packed up the three strings of fish balls neatly, and handed them to the front with a smile.
"Thank you for your hard work!" Hong Jialan took the fish balls, turned around and gave a skewer to Zhu Qingting and Fang Ziyao respectively, then stood in front of the road sign nearby and started discussing tonight's plans while waiting for the bus.
"Is it really Marie Sue? I haven't heard from her for a long time. I didn't expect she's still filming!" When Hong Jialan said that Su Yun was starring in "The Thousand Faces of the Lady", Fang Ziyao and her husband sighed, "And it was actually broadcast on TBB, which has always been at odds with her. It's really unexpected."
"Tsk, what's so strange about that? She's pretty and has great acting skills. If it weren't for the Taiwanese people's mischief, there wouldn't be any news about her in the past few years. We all like her "The Perfect Match"!" Zhu Qingting ate fish balls and denounced the idiots in Taiwan. She then added, "As for the cooperation, those people can't always be enemies. It's not surprising that they suddenly cooperate sometimes. After all, many people from TBB and Liying suddenly jumped to Jiayi, and then Jiayi collapsed, and these people followed Jiayi's people back to their old employers in disgrace!"
"That's right, just like those celebrities, they suddenly announce they are dating, and then suddenly announce their breakup. If you read one less day in the newspaper, it's as if the world has changed without you even realizing it..." Fang Ziyao nodded thoughtfully.
The three girls were chatting animatedly, and Chen Shaoqin, who was standing aside, also pricked up his ears and listened to their words: Su Yun...is she the girl who saved him back then?
When she was taken to the Longwu area by her driver to reunite with her family, everyone in Longwu said that she was very lucky to be rescued by a big star and did not have to be deported.
This TV series will be broadcast tonight on Jade Channel, which is the channel that everyone in the Cage House watches the most. In that case, we should ask in the Cage House to support her TV series tonight!
Chen Shaoqin made up his mind.
Time passed in a flash. At 9:25 in the evening, Hong Jialan, Zhu Qingting and Fang Ziyao gathered in the living room of the Hong family, either sitting or half lying, waiting for the theme song to play.
The strange thing is that after GG finished airing and a poster flashed across the screen, this drama “The Girl with a Thousand Faces” actually started straight away!
"What's going on? There's no opening theme song?" TBB's TV series usually have a theme song at the beginning and an ending song at the end of the series. Why doesn't this TV series have one?
"Maybe there's something going on between TBB and Marisue, so..." Fang Ziyao thought of an explanation.
"If there was really something to worry about, TBB would not have given her the 9:30 slot on Jade Channel. Maybe they were pressed for time and couldn't finish the theme song in time, so it's not in the first few episodes. They'll air it after it's done." Zhu Qingting was very calm: Recently, TBB and Liying have been competing for ratings and rushing to produce major dramas. Sometimes the theme song or ending song can't keep up with the production progress, so they will just broadcast a few episodes first and then arrange the matching music.
This argument made sense, so Hong Jialan and Fang Ziyao stopped arguing with it and started watching the TV series seriously.
The show begins with the heroine Maya Kitajima, played by Akina Nakamori.
In a ramen restaurant on Chinatown, a girl who loves watching TV dramas always keeps an eye on the TV and is not focused enough when working, so she always breaks or crashes various things and is scolded by her mother and the boss lady.
Every young person has had this experience of being addicted to TV and making mistakes. Hong Jialan and the other two couldn't help but laugh out loud at the daily misfortunes of the silly and cute girl in the play.
However, Kitajima Maya is not the kind of girl who indulges in drama just for relaxation and entertainment, but she truly loves drama - even when delivering takeout, she can't help but walk into the cinema and immerse herself in the world of the drama, forgetting the original purpose of her going out.
This movie is none other than the version of "The Dancing Girl of Izu" starring Tomokazu Miura and Momoe Yamaguchi. Su Yun deliberately arranged this version, apparently as an easter egg: Tomokazu Miura and Momoe Yamaguchi did not have cameo appearances in this movie, while Sayuri Yoshinaga had a cameo role as Utako Himekawa, the star mother of Ayumi Himekawa, and had a certain number of scenes.
Therefore, Su Yun had to reluctantly give up Sayuri Yoshinaga's version of "The Dancing Girl of Izu" and choose Momoe Yamaguchi's version of "The Dancing Girl of Izu" to add a little more star power.
After a movie, the ramen in the takeout box has turned into a mess.
In the end, Mayo was complained by the customers who had been waiting in vain because he failed to deliver the takeaway food in time.
"You only bring shame to your mother. How can you succeed in the future and have a good life if you continue like this..." Maya's mother was so angry that she scolded and beat Maya. The harsh words and actions not only made Akina Nakamori, who was acting at the time, feel the same way, but also made the audience outside the play feel uncomfortable.
Because she herself had such an experience, Akina Nakamori was particularly sincere when acting in this scene. In addition, she originally looked very pitiful. The audience in front of the TV saw her trying to hold back tears while being beaten and scolded, and they couldn't help but scold her: "It was just a mistake, is it necessary to beat her like this? Really..."
Chen Shaoqin looked in astonishment at the cage dwellers and neighbors around him who were denouncing Maya's mother: just now they were saying that Maya was a stupid and lazy child who had to be beaten before he would listen to his teachings. How come they changed their tune in less than a few minutes?
At his age, he certainly doesn't understand the minds of adults: when children are disobedient or make mistakes, they can't help but get angry, but when it comes to really taking action, few people can be so cruel.
Of course, there are people who do the same thing as in the play, but in the real world they don’t think it’s a big deal. However, when they see such a scene, they will subconsciously condemn it.
However, Mayo is obviously a hard-working person. The scene changes and she is performing the play she saw in the park surrounded by children. From the main role to the supporting role, she remembers every line and expression.
This person was like the spirit of a play, making the children laugh.
Suddenly, a woman in a long black dress and with long curly hair that was so long that her exact appearance could not be seen clearly rushed out, grabbed Maya's hand tightly, and repeatedly shouted, "I finally found someone like you." She excitedly asked Maya's name and address, which scared Maya so much that she turned around and ran away.
When the audience was wondering what was going on with this crazy woman in black who looked like a human trafficker, the woman in black just stared at Maya's back and slowly raised the corners of her lips.
"I finally found... the girl with a thousand masks." She whispered almost inaudibly.
Although the words of the woman in black pointed out the theme, the audience began to speculate based on this incident: This looks like the plot of a martial arts novel, where an ordinary protagonist is spotted by a crazy hermit, becomes his disciple, and eventually becomes a legend...
Is that the idea?
When the audience in Japan saw this plot, they accepted it calmly because of their inherently exaggerated and exaggerated personality; while when the audience in Hong Kong saw this plot, they subconsciously used the inertial thinking of that era, so they also accepted it quickly - it must be said that the audience in Hong Kong really almost guessed the general direction of the story.
The focus returned to the plot again. Mayo saw that the stage play "La Traviata" starring the big star Utako Himekawa was about to be performed, and her heart was moved. Her cute look with stars in her eyes made the audiences in both places couldn't help but smile.
Unfortunately, the ticket price for "La Dame aux Camélias" was very high. No matter how excited Maya was, she could only sigh after reading the introduction in the newspaper.
At this time, Sugiko, the daughter of the noodle shop owner played by Nakamori Akiho, came over with bad intentions: "Oh, this ticket? I have it!"
Maya was extremely jealous when she saw Shanzi showing off that the ticket was bought by her boyfriend.
"Do you want it?" Shanzi asked.
Maya nodded desperately: "I want it!"
Just as the audience was trying to guess what conditions this bad girl who had been bullying Maya was going to put forward, the scene suddenly changed.
“All ramen takeout delivery on New Year’s Eve will be handed over to Maya?!” The lady boss was very surprised when she heard this.
"Yes, she told me that all the takeouts will be delivered before December 31st." Shanzi held up the movie tickets and leisurely watched Maya running around with the takeout boxes. "The ship at Yokohama Port will sound the whistle on time at midnight. You must deliver the takeouts to these 99 stores before the whistle sounds!"
"I will!" Mayo glanced at the theater ticket in her hand breathlessly, then quickly packed six bowls of packaged ramen into the takeout box, and hurried out the door with one box in each hand, carrying two boxes.
Snowflakes gradually began to fall from the sky.
The thin girl was carrying two suitcases, each half her height, and was running laboriously through the streets and alleys. The snow was getting heavier, and her steps were becoming more and more difficult.
There were bright lights everywhere, but where she was it was cold, dark and covered with snow.
Light and dark interweave, and the steaming ramen is delivered to the customer, but the hand that holds the takeaway box is frozen blue.
"This is really a girl with a thousand faces, a thousand servings of ramen!" A naughty child shouted wittily, which immediately attracted a lot of scolding.
The children have never experienced such suffering, but everyone living in the cage has seen it and experienced it personally.
Others are happy and warm, while they themselves are tired and cold - but they have no regrets.
Because all these hardships will eventually turn into money to sustain life, to support yourself and your loved ones, so that they can also enjoy such happiness and warmth on a cold night in the future.
Under the eager anticipation of the audience, Maya finally delivered all the takeout in the last minute, and arrived at Yokohama Port breathlessly to ask Sugiko for the agreed reward.
"Shanzi, didn't we agree to go see this together?" Faced with her boyfriend's doubts, Shanzi frowned.
The expression on her face was very complicated, as if she found it unbelievable and unwilling, which made the audience feel a little uneasy.
"I wouldn't mind if you give me one or two tickets like this. Come and get them." In the cold wind of the winter night, Shanzi held up the theater tickets.
Maye had no doubts and happily extended his hand and walked forward.
As the wind grew stronger, the theater ticket bent backwards in an arc. With a whooshing sound, the ticket was blown into the air and fell into the sea.
"Tickets for La Dame aux Camélias!" Maye rushed to the railing on the shore.
"It's none of my business. It was the wind, the wind that blew it away!" Shanzi explained to her boyfriend anxiously, then looked at Maye who was still staring at the sea, "Give up on this idea. People like you are not qualified to watch such a high-level stage play..."
Before he finished speaking, there was a sound of diving.
In the middle of winter, someone actually jumped into the sea. People on the shore immediately gathered around the railing. Amidst everyone's gazes and discussions, Maye swam desperately.
Amid the anxious audience, she finally reached out and grabbed the coveted ticket.
After being rescued by a kind passerby and Sugiko's boyfriend who didn't like her, Maya held the half-dry ticket in her hands, with an indescribable light in her eyes: "I got it... This ticket is mine... Right..."
"What's wrong with you?!" Shanzi was shocked, "For such a ticket, you dare to do this..."
What is it for?
Not only Sugiko and passers-by, but even Maya's mother who came after hearing the news couldn't help but ask in her heart.
However, the protagonist in the storm just looked at the ticket in his hand with satisfaction and excitement. His mind was already immersed in the world of drama and he could no longer hear anything.
Even though she is not on the stage, she seems to be already on the stage, becoming the protagonist in the drama story, no longer the useless self in the eyes of the world.
The kind of obsession and crushing that seems to burn out one's life and is insane is the root of an eccentric genius.
Giving away everything for a beloved goal, perhaps some people still cannot understand such behavior, but when seeing that thin figure half lying on the ground, I suddenly got goosebumps involuntarily.
There are no words that can accurately describe my feelings at this moment. Only by experiencing it personally can you truly understand it.
Although we didn't get to see the much-anticipated Su Yun's role, such an exciting plot was enough to explain the entire episode's story. It felt like the time was about up, and the audience began to prepare to relax and stretch their bodies, waiting for the end of this episode.
Obviously, this play intends to have a relatively light-hearted ending after the exciting part.
In the theater, Maye, who had just got the ticket, had never been to such a high-end theater before and didn't quite understand the seating arrangement. She turned left and right and accidentally bumped into a tall and handsome young man in a suit.
The young man in a suit was not only handsome but also very amiable. He called a staff member and took Maya to her seat.
When Maya learned from the staff that this young man in a suit named Hayami Masumi was not only the next president of the Daito Theater, but also the Daito Cinema and Daito Entertainment Company, she couldn't help but blush and feel longing: How could such a powerful person be so kind and amiable?
Just as Maya was thinking about Hayami Masumi, a sudden low exclamation from inside the venue brought her back to her senses.
"Look! That's the husband and daughter of the famous star Utako Himekawa, the film director Tsuyoshi Himekawa and the so-called genius girl Ayumi Himekawa!"
"I heard that Himekawa Ayumi was already a child star when she was 5 years old. She was born with a talent for acting. Everyone said that her future achievements would surpass her mother's..."
Because the location was at the top of a mountain high up in the back, Maya couldn't see Himekawa Ayumi's appearance clearly. She only vaguely saw a beautiful figure slowly going away, and finally landing in the best viewing area in the middle of the front of the entire venue.
For some reason, Maya stared at the seat that completely blocked Himekawa Ayumi for a long time. It was not until the show started that she focused her attention on the stage.
She watched the performance intently from the beginning to the end, and only when the curtain fell did she slowly wake up from the state of being completely immersed in the world of the play.
After she came to her senses, she subconsciously looked towards the position of the genius girl Ayumi Himekawa.
For some unknown reason, the genius girl Himekawa Ayumi, played by Su Yun, inadvertently raised her head and glanced back slightly when she stood up.
The moment their eyes met, time seemed to stand still.
The eccentric genius looking down has an inferiority complex that has never been released, while the traditional genius looking up has a proud and elegant attitude just like the first time they met.
Although these two people have a huge gap in identity, status, and acting skills, at this moment, they can feel the fiery passion in each other that is exactly the same as their own.
It's about acting, about acting skills, about the obsession and love for the world in the play...
At this moment, the narration also sounded in this century-long confrontation scene that was like a work of art: Kitajima Maya and Himekawa Ayumi at this time had never expected that in the future, they would become lifelong opponents and friends.
Afterwards, music that is clearly not in the style of an ending theme begins to play. It is filled with a passion like fighting spirit, yet it also carries a bright and relaxed flavor, just like after going through countless hardships and dangers, there is a sudden turn of events and a bright future ahead.
The theme song was placed at the end?!
Although they were somewhat skeptical, most of the audience at this time did not care about the special arrangement of the theme song - after all, the vast and brilliant starry sky reflected by those smoky purple eyes had been deeply engraved in the hearts and dreams of a generation since the moment they first saw it.
Close-ups of Su Yun are interspersed with the music of the theme song. This face, which has been familiar to us for a long time but always makes people feel surprised when they see it, officially returns to the eyes of the Hong Kong audience at this moment.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
